Evening Star Newspaper, March 13, 1897, Page 20

20 THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, MARCH 13, 1897-24 PAGES. DARE DEVIL SOLDIER The Irishman With a Rifle in Hand and a Joke on Lips. Difficult to Govern and Invariably Thirsty. THE OFFICERS = CHAFFING The Evening Star. 1807, MeCinre Compans.) ND THE IRISH teer! That com- of reckless- Joviality, hard fighting and impa- tience of d ir camp. In our western regiments he a usually as an atom floating in the more purely American organiza- tions, but In a cer- tain few cases he coalesced with kin- i an Irish regiment, ppy the commander who hed one of hese in his when the enemy lay be- hind obstructions and had to be rushed out i but show h regiment would go glad shout as in a wilder- he offi by ach It ers wor gocd mettle, the at an earthwor h time as they ine fights in hate for the uthor of Ohio volun- aving failed in being th first om- ping being | ate in the company with next nticip: the offic by draw administering a were in ine and n tve PADDY GUYING Shtates governmint an’ to vote elf as captain av this company, so vez —ete. sy to Drill. it was the cu to elect its own officers 4 although sometimes the ot have been mad « fools were never Irish soldiers were easy to neral thing, and if, as was the an _ex-soldier of the In those ear tom ¥ Was the di master, they f™anual and facings most | serge method vlved yus mixture of grim verity and thrifters! shouldher, shift ar- tered thunder. f whining tone: pe yer atlor. ruffness: re, ye tunnel-mouthed they were as good as long march. The im tender feet ar jon to straggle. The pun- Straggling they were clever < by excuses which usually car- mollify authority. S the soldiers phrased eal of side,” once hi staff officers, orderlies without which he never d_ severely a irish), who wa ipped to the with some a be plana Sey What are 0 e ear of your company, o which the high private replied respectfu Sure, I'm mustherin’ me ard. general. camp escaped the punishment some aff would have enjoyed seein out to him. = Chaffing Officers. These h volunteers could chaff an such external respect hat only an adept rface. 4 h volunteers | S i Kape yer eyes | t be howldin’ it | Suppose it "ud go off, the an heaven | i | | | | | | ! »pular officers in the second year of the He was really a ined officer of long h in manner to suit ed to of the traggler nsisting on ed dy each from f chums whe ing it was "an eye- belong- w officer as ‘arecxo0 bolding cooking hardly have From under his orderly jay for duty at i him to carry the to the chaplain ul a uting. “ye t afraid 0° ral; divil a get of him, annyhow, an’ ye save yer note an’ me legs. >w two fellys over in the second brig- wid, a gallon betune ‘em av y whisky that would ate a hole throvgh a nteen. I'll go over there for ye, av ye like, an’— Bugler, Not Soldier. The sentence was never completed. 1 was once sent to bring in under arrest some soldiers who had escaped from camp and were reported as amusing themselves riding terrified contrabands down a coal shute in the vicinity. Within half a mile from camp I met coming back a fine-look- ing soldier, whom I had often noticed as one who had evidently served in the Brit- ish army and who was, so far as I knew, a model man. “O'Nell, I am sorry to see you here—the fellow had evidently been drinking—“but my orders are to arrest and send back all oldiers out of camp without permission. There's no help for it.” He brought himself together and, hand at visor of his cap, hiccoughed: “Plaze, str, t what did ve say was the ordhers?* To arrest all soldiers out of camp with- cut permission.” “Then, sir,” said he, throwing his hand cut full length in exaggerated salute, “be- gerra, I'm all right. I'm a bugler. There's lots o° sodgers down below there—mostly in a terrible state o° dhrink, I'm sorry to say. ‘There's nothing so mane as a dhrunken sodger. I despise “em meself. I did not get that properly through my brain until he had escaped, nor did I re- port him, as he made no trouble later. Green Troops in Battle. The first battle for entirely green troops, where officers and men are alike new to the business, generally brings a good deal of solemn feeling until the boys get warmed up and realize that every one is not going to be killed or even hit immediately, and I think green troops are more engaged in thinking each of himself than of anything else. Probably a good many unexpressed prayers anc resolutions to do better in the future, if any future Is mercifully left, ight be discovered by a mind reader, but even in those moments the reckless Irish humor comes out. Many a man beside the chaplain was shocked and then had to laugh as an Irish regiment, in September, ordered to go in for the first time C fire, heard a blatant railwa: brakeman’s voice call out from the ranks: “Passengers for h— this way!” any of you able to remember the Irish soldier, fresh home from the war, with his honest head aflame with injudi- cious libations? The phonograph was not invented soon enough. The talk of such a ran on battle subjects should have been preserved. “What was I? A sarjint. An’ av ye know annything o° throops ved know a <arfint has a dale more to do whin it comes o fightin’ than a cornpany officer. The is all well in camp an’ on mut it : ts takes charge ghtin’: t to the ginerals. imber very well Gineral .Rosecrans up to me at the battle o” Perryville wipin’ the forehead of him as he sez: I'm afraid it’s all up wid us: the mostly out o° kyartridges an’ the firin’ wickeder than iver. What wiil <=, I sez to him, sez » don’t officers very comin’ A PETTY OFFICER. | ter ‘Are ye sure?’ sez he. ‘Sock sure,” sez I, ‘but av ye lave thim stoppin’ secession bul- lets an’ makin’ no return,’ sez I, ‘they'll soon be out o° heart intirely, sez I. ‘Tl take me oath ye're right.’ sez he, ‘but I don't know how to cure it,” sez he, ‘thim rebels is just knockin’ the dandruff out ov us ivery way,” sez he. ‘Well, Gineral Rose- crans, z 1, ‘so long as ye ask me,’ sez I. I wud just ordher a charge,’ sez I, ‘be way | av divarshion.’ “So wid thi in we wint, an’ in five min- utes more ye could hear a mouse squeak, so quiet it , an’ the inimy dhrove moiles from the field av kyarnage. Jeff Davis said himself that charges was what tuck all the Merrow out 0’ his bones.” And yet had all the truth been known that same silly fellow, with his outrageous romancing, had perhaps really borne him- self that day so bravely that had he served | @ prince instead of a people he might have . man. Shlope | fairly worn a medal for gallant conduct. When the Gun Missed Fire. I wonder if the incident recorded of an iiinots Irish infantryman at Shiloh was adapted from an ancient tale er was really besed on an approximate fact? As given over camp res {t ran that the soldier, in the mad scurry of firing at will, at close range, got a second cartridge rammed down his Enfield, the first having missed fire, and In the smoke and excitement went on ramming down another after each un- successful attempt to fire the piece. His lieutenant, seeing that he was in trouble, angrily took the rifle, and, with better suc- cess, discharged it himself, with an explo- sion like that of a twenty-four-pounder. The private, from behind the tree he had jumped to as the officer raised the gun, yelled out as the Heutenant went over backward: “For the love o° heaven, lieu- ant, howld her sthrong; there's foive more loads to come out.” However this may be, J have known sol- diers, not necessarily, but probably Irish, to load up even more dangerously by filling their rifle barrels with stolen whisky, put- ting a tiny plug in the nipple. and with the muzzle tompioned, carrying the weapon so carefully on the march as to confirm sus- picions created Ly a strong smell of vil- lainous whisky. The recklessness of this is not realized until one considers that in campaigning a soldier's life might easily hang on his ability to use his rifle promptly. With all its rollicking deviltry, the Irish regiment was a model in its relations with its chaplain. These plains were usually priests who held their lives cheaper than dirt when duty called, and who apart from their clerical influence with the soldiers were looked up to as men of courage, edu- cation and great good fellowship. They led | better lives than their fellow officers, but | when it came to personal risks sneers were thus breaking | j curses | hely women p: turned to prai At Vicksburg sisters of charity came among us. It m: one think better of our rough common soldiers—Protestant and Catholic alfke—to see them hush their and stand uncovered to let these through the muddy lines —— ee Keeping Lent. a Keepe The larder leane And cleane fat of veales and sheape? ¥ Is it to anit the dish OF fleshe, yet still To fill ‘The platter big h with fish? fast an rags Took and soure? sto keep thy Lent! ROBERT HERRICK. — tee Murrying on $10 a Week. | Prom the Chk ago Daily Tribune. “Young Higzinside married, you say, on $10 a week? That took nerve, anyhow. What was he working at?" “Nothing. It was the girl that was earn- ing the $10." —isgest %e It matiers little what it is that you want yWhether a situation or a servant—a “want” ad. in The Star will reach the 1 son who can fill your need. a THE CITY’S DANCE How Parisians Enjoy-the Balls in the Hotel de Ville. TRIUMPHANT DEMOCRACY The Municipal Council Entertain Their Constituents. ——— , MUSIC AND PERFUMES Ses LIGHT: Spectal Correspondence of The Evening Star. PARIS, February 2%. 18% M Y BARBER GAV me my first invita- tion. “You had best go, monsieur,” he said; “they are mag- nificent, the balls of the Hetel de Ville— lights, music, per- fumes, in flood: multitudes of in ibly beautiful dames and demoiselles pistache and straw- berry, vanilla and raspberry !—the pres- ident of the republic!—the president of the senate! and of the chambers!—eight thou- sand invitations! You will not regret your evening I went@ind have continued to, and shall so long as I remain in Paris; for of all the extraerdinary democratic - socialistic phenomera of the great socialistic-com- munistic capital these functions of the city hall are the most striking and sug- gestive. That a municipality should calm- ly vote 218,000 francs a year of the peo- ple's money to a series of balls is, of course, the main novelty; but there are quite as novel details by the way. The Gem of the Capital. The Hotel de Ville of Paris, of which every one has heard, is called by the Par- isians themselves “the gem of the - tal.” It is a splendid edifice, on the one hand fresh and clean and new—ina rated orly in 18! and, on the other chitecturally dignifed and worthy—the oid graceful plan of the Italian Roceadot fous Francis the preserved in the new worked for the 1u: in beirg wisely building. In 1871 those wonderful com- munists, who appe in it in power today, haa the bright idea of burning the old original. It had been added to, adapte and modified, but still preser metry along with its historic associations. The present palace, owned throughout th: world for wealth of modern fre and other decoration, is, therefor another illustration. of how good is my teriovsly wrought from evil. One ne to have his faith strengghened thus contemplation of ihe paradox. these communists again, the men—yes, actually, —now loriding it in these same halls, t pockets so full of invitations to lobster-and- champagne balls—the product of their lib- eral legislation—that they can hand batch- es of them over to their poor relations to sell cn the profit-sharing plan. I do not know exactly how many of these oll braves have, taking advantage of the sev- eral amnesties, had themselves el el to the mtnicipality, not despite of but be- cavse of their part In the bloody communi the real thing is not so much that indi- viduals have survived to triumph as their Principles. Their sons and nephews are municipal councillors, to the extent of forming a majority. The “Rights of Paris” party is absolutely communist in its ideals. TraMec in Invitations, ‘The invitation tickets to these city hall dances often pass through strange hands. Monsieur Bellan, syndic of the council, re- cently felt it incumbent on him, because of the scandal, to investigate their disposition, for it was being said openly that they could be bought, and for as little as $3 apiece, at certain wine shops in the neigh- borhood of the city hall. Now such a traffic is, obviously, a very different thing from the discreet maneuvers of, say, a di: criminating barber with a political “pull. It must be stopped. The Cafe de 'Horloge, at the corner of the Place of the Hotel de Ville, was the indicated wine shop; and, in- formation being given, M. Lepine, prefect of police, set five detectives on the watch. ‘They suce -eded in obtaining several tickets each. As each card is numbered, it took but a short time to discover the names of the original recipients. So far the news- papers of Paris had the story fair and fuli. And it seemed as if strange revelations were to be continued in their next. But— mystery!—no reporter has as yet been able to worm the slightest hint out of the syn- dic or his clerks as to whom the frugal- minded city fathers were. Thirteen Thousand. But what are a few hundred: tickets sold compar2d with the great mass of 13,000 tickets issued? For this is the average number, though to last week's crush there are said to have been 15,000. Fifteen thou- sand men, women and children “assisted,” and 15,000 others vainly solicited entrances. As two balls are given yearly, estimate that 28,000 citizens and citlzenesses were thus given an opportunity to “en transpirer une” at the city’s—not altogether the tax-pay- ers’—expense. “Yet on reflection,’ says a socialist statesman in a popular morning paper, “on reflection, it is very little.” “It is not enough!" he G¢rie: “Paris counts almost three million souls, and I can see no serious reason why the humblest of these three thousand thousands should not have an invitation in his turn! After all,” he argues, “the poor ramasseur de megots— Gatherer of cigarette stumps—would proba- bly make as good a figure around the buf- fet of the Hotel de Ville as our munictpa! councillors, and even deputies, if it is true, as impartial observers have affirmed, that the best-looking, best-dressed men at these balls are the waiters. Now, in spite of their pretentions to the fraternity of socialism, the actual beneficiaries of the balls of the Hotel de Ville are favorites, ‘enjoyers,’ jeapitalos and ‘proprios” It ought not to d its sym- in Here are If same “This limitation” and Invitations a over,” he sa: emphasize the to twenty-six thous- year—‘“‘has bred, more- “certain practices which plutocratic characteristics —that each of fifty cards of invitation. of them has behind him a cons municipal councillor disposes But, as each ituency of from fifteen hundred to two thousand‘ voters, you can easily imagine the dissatis- faction which must be inseparable from have had the idea of ‘putting up their batch of tickets at auction, the proceeds to be handed over to the poor of the quar- ter; it is then the Rothschilds ters—the butchers, the bake ding highest, go each year to the balls, while the porr ‘populo” rubs—brushes his empty stomach!” “Oh, democracy are committed i Everything is what aristocratic abuses thy name! relative, and the real “great world” of Paris looks on the “grow- ing aristocrac: of the well-intentioned Hotel de Ville balls as the funniest kind of a joke. Indeed, this is so much so that not only the middle bourgeoisie, but even the lower middle, taking the hint, have learned to imitate their betters and decry them. For all such the balls of the Hotel de Ville are outrageous beer gardens,where the populace, let loose on food and drink, disports itself with all the abandon of a dog fight. They are fond of telling that their chambermaids enjoy them, and they like to say: “What can ‘the people’ want more; do we not even give them balls, with lobster and champagne?” The Lower Upper Clans, Thus, while the aristocrats and those who ape them in ideas remain indulgently amused; while the great mass of the good scramble for invitations, and while social- istic friends of the oppressed workingman declaim against aristocratic favoritism, there is another class, between the lower middle and upper middle or the lower up- per—perhaps it is the real and very mid- dle—who have another theory still. They think that the balls are growing lower In tone each year, and that the time has come to call a halt. “Itis not the duty of the municipality to —or else you do not know | distribution of them, good or iil. Some | furnish dance music, lights, waxed floor and refreshments to any one,” their lead- ers say. “If the city’s money is to be spent in such celebrations, let it be with some result.” They deplore the-inequality of the distribution of cards, whieorecognizing its inevitableness under the present syste “Let the municipal fetes be given hence- forth In honor of great séiéntific discover- jes, or to glorify great evehts interesting to all France as well asnta’ Paris, or fete some great man or category of men. This would afford opportunity to invite the lead- ing men of different profésstons and trades ang give a special charaétet to each func- tion.” i A Glimpse ‘of’ a° Ball. Without attempting to Getive any moral from them, I can only éxpress the wish that every fellow-countryinan, in these days of distraction when no one knows what is right, could take a look in at these democratic balls of the Paris Hotel-de- Ville. They will always stay fixed in my memory as brilliant and gigantic, if con- fused and pandemoniacal, living | pictures giving rise to none too clear and all too complicated reffections, if not on the search for happiness, at least on the ef- fort to produce happiness in others. There are those magnificent corridors, lined with guardsmen, blazing with light; those gor- geous halls, where over and around the blinding effulgence of the great gilded chandeliers the color schemes of the fore- most Paris artists fight each other as in a war where demigods make bombs of rainbows; those all too decorated mazes, halls, ball rooms, supper rooms, reception rooms, the salons of the Hotel-de-Ville, whose like we plain Americans may not imagine. Then there are, undoubtedly, the great ones of the nation, Felix Faure, the president, the ministers, the presidents of the two chambers, the senators—or some of them—the deputies—and most of them—and all the train of employes. Then they must be, after all, exactly what your barber said,’ you will’ exclaim, “magnificent—lights, perfumes and in floods! multitudes of incredibly beautiful dames and demoiselles in pistache and strawberry, vanilla and raspberry—and not the vulgar scrambles you would make them out?” From “Charles' Point of View. Without making any point of the fact that the president of the republic and his satellites put in their appearance quite as much from necessity as inclination—not even a president dare refuse the invitation of that proud corporation, nor dared any French king in the days gone by—I will quote whit Charles, the valet de chambre who makes my bed, said on the morrow of last week’s great function. He had been thei Did you remark, monsieur,” he said, “the number of ladies who would dart their hards suddenly to their knees or their sides or their backs?’ ‘Yes, they ed to be struck by a sudden emotion.” a sudden flea!” he responded, scratch- ing his nose sympathetically at the thought of it. Then, resuming, he expressed his admiration for the activity and muscular strength of his fellow-countrymen and women, still admirable and beautiful, de- spite all pessimistic talk about degenera- tion. It was at the buffet, he said, that he made these observations. ‘There at ; the buffet, monsieur, where man—and wo- man also—manifests himself in all the simplicity of his nature, which is to con- sume without fatigue and without interrup- tion everything in ht, provided it costs nothin STERLING HEILIG. > Her Mistake. From the Detroit Free Press. ‘They were twins,as much alike as two peas, and even their mother nad, trouble some- times to discriminate between them. But a careful scanning of their’ faces usually decided her, because one of the two wore serious look, while the other was alwa smiling. They were five years and a half old and full of mischief. Here was a peculiar feature of their characters. The serious boy was brimful fun, while the one that was always iling hadn't a particle of fun in his com- position. One day their mother found them in the china closet, which was forbidden terri- tcry, and both boys had been eating pre- serves. They were their own witnesses, and neither could prove an ajibi. “I'll whip you both,” said the mother, “and not show any partiality. You both look like little pigs.” Off_came the maternal slipper, and Mas- ter David had a good trouncing, and the mother had seized Claude to give him the same, when she was disturbed by a caller, who stayed so long that the punished twin had stopped crying to listen to the. con- versation. “Now, Claude, it’s your turn,” said the mother, and whack! whack! went the slip- per sole, while the wriggling youngster howled and bawled. “'Tain’t fair,” he sobbe: wrong pig by th’ ear, mamma.’ “Do you mean to say, Claude, that you are not as guilty as your brother?” But the boy kept on howling, and then the other twin said, with a calm intona- tien that spoke of an unruffled disposition “You've whipped Davy twice, mamma; this little pig didn’t get any. RHE eat The Cost of Strikes. From the Arena. For the strikes that occurred from iSS1 to 1886, inclusive, the wage loss by em- ployes is estimated by the United States commissioner of labor at $51,814,000, and the employers’ losses estimated by the same euthority at $30,701,000. And the trouble is not growing less as the years go by. From 1741 to 1880, inclusive, there were 1,41 strikes and lockouts; while for the six years ending December 31, 1886, the num- ber of strikes alone was 3,902—forty a year for the first period, and over 6 a year for the secord period. Making all due allow- ance for fuller reporting of strikes in the latter period, the contrast is still a startling ore. Surely it is cheaper as well as more just to settle by court than by strike. At pres- ent we pay for the strike first, then we pay for a commission to examine into its causes and results; let us have the inquiry first, end save the expense of the strike. ———— eee. To Look Young Dress in the Latest Style. From the Boston Herald. The most essential point, perhaps, in at- taining every woman's object of “looking young” is to dress always in the latest mode. The French understand this to per- fection, the English do not even pretend to. A dowager wears gowns of from five to twenty-five years old in style. A grande dame Parisienne looks always as though she had just stepped from the atelier of a smart couturilere. A woman of forty, in an old-fashioned gown, and thin and badly dressed hair, looks passe entirely, while her friend of fifty-five, in smartest array, is young in every movement. Her stylish gown swings about her with an air of distinction, and her fashionable hat shades her smooth forehead. Her face is framed in ruches and boas and Medici collars, and with soft- ly pompadoured hair modishly undule. She stands and walks with the erect carriage and the little jerky trip Sf! a young wo- man, who sits with her’ skirts sweeping the floor beside her, her ‘féét together or easily crossed, instead of flouncing down on her back breadths and folding her hands over a wide lap. Altogether she is a replica of her daughter. ‘you got the The leading man of the company.—Life. BIRDS AND MONKEYS Mocking Bird Jake and His Trip to Mexico. and HOW PARROTS ARE CAUGHT A Beautiful Region and Plenty of Game. HABITS OF MOCKING BIRDS ee aaa) ae OCKING BIRD Jake, the Texas trap- per, arrived in Wash- ington yesterday, bringing with him 1,800 of the songster iz M kings, 250 Mexican parro’ 400 crested redbirds, 26 Mexican monkeys’ and a num- ber of beautiful fur rob He started Christ- mas eve from south- + RARE Gn Mexico, and hoped to be in Washington in time to see McKinley inaugurated, but the monkeys got sick on the way and he was compelled to stop off. His trip, however, was an un- usually lucky one, and only eight mocking birds died on the long journey. There are few of the old-time trappers to be seen nowadays, and Jake is a true representative of that hardy class that have disappeared from civilization. The bird fanciers in the east claim all their time. The exciting ride after the buffalo has been succeeded by the tame sport of bird catch- ing. But there is money in it, and, as this is the desideratum, there is no grumbling. A reporter of The Star hunted him up last evening and had a long talk with the acknowledged authority on mocking birds. Jake is a tall, angular man, with bronzed features, a typical trapper in fact. Al- though past the middle of life, he is lively, and his bright eyes dance as he rehearses some exploit of the plains. In his early days he was a guide, and the lone star state is responsible for his existence. He recalls with pleasure the early days on the frontier, the numerous brushes he has had with the greasers, and the superb hunting that is now but a memory. He remembers the large herds of buffalo that frequented but a few yi ago, and sadly re- slaughter that exter- minated them. When wagon trains with emigrants no more sought homes in the great southwest Jake's business as a guide failed. He then became a hunter, and later, hearing of the big prices paid in the east for mocking birds, and seeing an un- limited supply in sight, he became a bird catcher. Jake was in a reminiscent mood last night and talked at length. The Mocking Bird. “Of course I like the bird-catching bus- iness. It ain't much sport, but it keeps me out in the country, away from the city, and brings me enough money to keep this old hulk afloat. A mocking bird is a curious fellow. He can beat any bird I ever heard singing, can fight like old Sullivan used to, and, all in all, is the happiest little bird that flies. He isn’t mi to look at; that is, he hasn’t red feathers and green wings, but when it comes to shape, he is entitled to the front row in the ballet. Then look at the sense the bird has. He can enter- tain you all day with songs, and never re- peat. One minute we hear him whistle l'ke a canary, the next like a cat bird, and next he sends every bird to cover with his re- markable imitation of a hawk. Anywhere in the south you can find them, but away down there jn Texas in the low, swampy ccuntry he is more at home, and any bright morning now the woods are re- scunding with his merry song. His song is sweetest just now, for he is flirting and has an eye for matrimony. Next month he gets down to business and takes unto himself a partner. They build their nest in some low bush or tree, seldom more than eight feet from the ground, and in the midst of a dense thicket. Two broods are hatched each season. During the nest- ing season, the mocking bird evinces a great jealousy for the nest, and nothing is permitted to approach it. hey fight to the death for their little ones. It takes fourteen days of constant attention before the eggs hatch. The little birds are easily reared, and live for the ™most part on berries. Now and then a fat spider ts added to the food, and they grow with great rapidity. There are some peo- ple who prefer to have these nestlings for raising, but experienc has taught :ne that the best birds for singing are the young healthy ones that have learned to fly. Be- fcre he is two months old the male bird begins to sing, and from that time cn until old age, save during the molting season, he keeps things merry. How They Are Caught. “How do I catch them? It’s easy enough. It's to keep them healthy that requires the greatest care. Usually I take my outfit in the mocking bird country and pitch my tent near a thicket, where I have noticed the birds to be plentiful. Before the sun rises my traps are in position, and before the sun has got well up in the heavens the day’s work is cver. A cage with a false door and a captive bird is the device I usually employ. You know, mocking birds are great fighters and moat inquisi- tive. When they espy a strange bird in a cage they immediately commence an in- vestigation. That's what gets them into trouble. There’s a sudden spring, and then I collect him for the bird fanciers. It is all a mistake to say that captive birds do not sing as well as those that are free. I will admit that the constant noises of a city do not furnish many beautiful notes for the bird to imitate, but, generally speaking, there is little difference in the songs. Difference in Sex. “The first question a would-be purchaser asks of a bird dealer is: ‘How do you know that this fs a male bird?” They know well enough that the female birds do not make good songsters, although there are times during the year when the female sings as well as the male. Why, one of the finest whistlers I ever heard in life was a female. No one knew it unti! one morning a little light blue egg with large brown spots was found in the cage. That was before I went into the bird catching business. Now I defy any one to fool me. Atter a little experience It is the easiest thing in the world to distinguish the sexes. All that is necessary is to examine the wings. The male birds have four white feathers, perfectly shaped and marked. Look out for the bird if the feithers are splashed. Then the male bird is larger. In selecting a bird get one if possible that is just beginning to sing. The four-feather bird is usually the best. I was askec a short time ago, if mocking birds would breed in captivity. My answer is yes they will if properly cared for. As I have said, a mccking bird is shy, and it requires iso- lation from the busy scenes of the day to make him contented when it comes to raising a family. Birds raised this way are to my mind the very best, since they become accustomed to you and may be taught anything. he song is best when the bird 1s three years cld. The notes are purer and his range has been established. By careful treatment a mocking bird lives fifteen or twenty years.” “Tell me,” said the reporter, “did you catch these birds in Mexico?” “No, sir. These birds are all full-fledged Americans. They came from Texas. Mexican Monkeys. “You know, my trip into Mexico was for the purpose of catching monkeys and par- rots. During the early part of last Sep- tember I arrived at Campecha, and looked about for my crew. I was bound for the interior, where few white men ever went. The country is poorly populated, and one can travel days without seeing a house. 1 finally selected my crew, five dirty Mex- icans, who did not have as much ambition as the monkeys we were going after. We had no trouble about terms. Twenty-five cents a day, which is twelve and a half cents in our money, was entirely satisfac- tory, the crew to furnish in addition its own grub. I lingered two days in Campe- cha and then struck off to the south, final- ly locating between Guatemala and the state of Campecha. What a country. Veg- etation {s profuse and everything is as nature made it. No man has tried to im- prove—he couldn't if he wanted to. The big trees with their variegated foliage, fan- tastic wild flowers growing everywhere, the gayly plumaged birds and the clima’ with its soft air and balmy breezes mak, one involuntarily halt and thank God he lives to enjoy life. Fancy, if you can, great forests of that precious wood, ebony. The natives sell it for railroad ties and burn it in their stoves. We pitched our camp the first day in the most beautiful spot I ever saw. It was beside a crystal spring, in a natural clearing. Around us were the tall trees, and far away in the distance the crest of the Sierra Madres. There was a chattering going cn a short distance from my tent, gate. There at the top of a cactus, which the Mexicans call petayo, I saw a big spider monkey tugging away at a sort of apple that grew at the very tip of the plant. He had it after awhile, descended to the ground with the skill of a sword walker. How he ever did it with- out pricking his feet 1 cannot tell, for the plant was covered with sharp as a needle. he went up a neigh: the trees he went faster than any hors ever saw run. He would tail, then cateh with feet, and then with his hind ones, until before I could think to shoot he was out of sight. I was in the monkey country, and from that day my stay in Mexico became in- teresting. Here was a new kind of game, and all the strategy I had learnt on the plains counted for naught here. A few centipedes attracted by the campfire and one or two iarantulas were the only vis- itors we bad. Catehing Parrots. “The rext morning we started to work. I was awakened with the light by the most outrageous noise I ever heard. Why, a dozen puffing steam engines would have been sweet music compared with what I heard when I opened my eyes. Screeching in all keys came from the woods behind the camp. The parrots had started the morning anthem. After a hurried break- fast of dried beef and bread, with a cup of strcrg Mexican coffee to wash it down, we started. My, what a sight. Thousands of pretty polls were in the tree tops screech- ing. I wanted to know how we were going to catch them. My head man replied in Mexican that we couid not catch those birds. As he said this two big fellows dropped to the ground before us and had a fight that would have put a bu'ldog to shame. I ran forward to catch them, when the Mexican called out stop. He added, the ferocious little fellows would nip a piece out of me before 1 thought, and besides they would not live. As [looked closer I saw several varieties of parrots, but only thought of the double yellow heads. They were the best talkers I had heard and that was the only variety I wanted. But it was the nestlings that were desirable, and we | pushed further into the interior to find the ae and then stout spurs as Wher he saw me away oring tree, and through 1 his swing by his front It was not much trouble after we had located them. The men climbed up the trees and robbed the nests with as much satisfaction as a small boy. The young are taken before their eyes are scarcely open and fed on dough. This makes them tractable, and they are seldom fierce. While some claim the African gray is fore intelligent, I do not agree with them. The yellow head when properly | trained can talk and sing as well as some people. The Cartnegena is another good Variety found in Mexico. Parrotts need constant attention, for sudden draughts are death to them. Ordinarily they live to be fifty or seventy-five years of age. How Monkeys Are Captured. “We completed our parrot list early in the fall and then bent our energies to mon- keys. Here again the generally accepted idea of how monkeys are captured is wrong. Monkeys are taken when they are young, and never when they are over six months old. In the first place, monkeys that can run about are very hard to catch, and in the second place, they are subject to consumption, and close confinement puts an end to them in short order. Spider Monkeys. “These spider monkeys are the most idiot- ic animals I ever saw. They haven't got serse enough to bite you, and are foolish in every other way. We catch the baby monkeys out of the nest. Occasionally an old mamie is caught with two or three babies clinging on to her. They make no resistence whatever, and are easily trained. We fcund numerous cinnamon monkeys in the interior, and killed a number of pan- thers, jaguars and black-tailed deer. They have the musk hog, or the picarri, as it is sometimes called. When it comes to fight- ing they are the real thing, and a hunter en horseback had better keep the horse away from them, for they will cut him down with their sharp teeth. “We only had one accident and that was a peculiar one. It was while we were catching parrotts. A man named Jose was climbing a tree, when we were M@artled to hear him cry out in pain and then saw him jump twenty feet to the ground. We ran up to him and found he had broken his arm. But his face, hands and neck were red and blistered. He had climbed into a nest of tree ants, and they had made an attack on him. Next year I am going to fit out an expedition and bring back a whole menagerie of wild Mexican animals. It’s 2 great country for everything but poor people, and they might just as well commit suicide at once, for the life they are forced to lead is worse than slavery. The great majority of the lower class of Mexicans do not seem to care. ‘They have been raised to the hard, brutal life, and would not understand kindness. Mexico is good enough to visit, but give me the old United States when it comes to camping for life.” —>—_ THE SECRET OF JOLLITY. the Butcher, by His Actio From the New York World. A fine, jolly butcher is Leypoldt, when you tell him you want the best can go away cortent, knowing that it come and that the price wiil be fair honest. “How is it you are always so fine jolly?” the reporter asked him. “Oh, I don’t know,” said Leypoldt, laugh- ing fit to kill. “Good conscience perhaps. Perhaps it is good digestion.” Just then a voice broke in. It came from an old colored woman. “Any help fo. the poor today?” “Why, yes, Mrs. Rushmore. I guess we've got a little something for you to- day.” And the jolly butcher cut off a big chunk cf beef and placed it in the trem- bling hand. The old woman thanked him and went out. “Oh, she’s all right,” said Leypoldt, heartily. A hard-working woman when there is any work to do. I’ve know her for years. Many of them? God bless you, sir, you ought to stand behind this counter for a day. You'd get an education. No, I don’t give to every beggar that comes along, but if I know that one is worthy— well, what's a scrap of meat, anyway?” And that’s why Leypoldt is fine and jolly. tee-- - Wholly authorized, From the Chicago Tribune. “It you ask simply for my opinion,” said the learned geologist to the reporter, “I shall be compelled to say that the glacial drift theory only partially accounts for it. ‘The region south of the Gulf of Finland, for instance, 1s covered with bowlders car- ried there from the other side of the gulf by glacial action in the prehistoric ages. These bowlders, though technically cailed erratic, are plainly--* “Pardon me for interrupting you, prefes- sor,” said the reporter, “but do ihere belong to the stratitiel or the unstratified Gritty’ “I do not care io venture an opinion as to that,” replied the eminen* geologist. ‘The question has not yet been passed pon by the legislature of Indiana.” ———_ os Unavoidable. From the Chicago Tribune. “That was a very queer poem on ‘The ‘Three Ages of Man’ you published m your paper this :norning,” said the man who happened in. “The general understanding is that there are seven ages of man.” “It was written “The Seven Ages of Man,’ ” explained the worried Sunday edi- tor, “but I had to cut it down to three on account of a lack of space. ——+e--_____ Cause and Effect. From tbe Indianapolis Journal. “Were you in any great action during the war?” “Yes. That is the reason there is so lit- tle action in me,” said the old soldier who had a wooden leg. Leypoldt, Answered It and you will and and —s Are worthless names forged? Or unpopular goods imitated? No. : Because it isn’t worth while. Therefore the extensive counterfeiting of our labels and capsules is the strongest evidence of the merit of our “Canadian Club” e Whisky. Beware of these counter- feits, and write us regarding anything which you suspect. The quality of .-. «CANADIAN CLUB” is always fully maintained. Imitations are always inferior. - HIRAM WALKER & SONS, Lim'd, Walkerville, Canada. For names of dealers han the genuine whisky >to wholesale agent, CHARLES KRAEMER, INGTON. © TRAIN. Which Just Suits the Manufacturers. Hare novelt From th The hauling fr Haven wa: that city a few days ago yr. Courant. of an electric locomotive ht cars on the pts of New witnessed for the finst time in when the Manu- facturers’ Street Railroad Company was completed. The total length and one-sixteenth miles and each patron provided with ample sidings to largest freight cars The locomotive weichs str is one thirty tons and has all its weight on four driving wheels forty-four inches in diameter. The power is furnished by two axle motors, having an aggregate capacity of 4 horse-y mounted direct with gearing or axles. The truck, which hangs di from the journal boxes, fs made of eye beams and carries the mo 1 cab, each on independent spirs The cab is made of sheet iron, and wir s are so located that an unobstructed virv is‘ obtained in all directions. A © paraliel controller governs the supply current, which mes through the ove head trolley from the station of the Fair Haven and Westville Railroad Company The locomotive was. originally designed for a speed of thirty mil n hour, but id now wound for a maximum of twelva at which rate it can 0 fifteen loaded freig’ ily haul from t cars on a rs in one train a nd the maximum sp on the city streets ts > allowed 1 per- seven Only four « by the cit mitted while miles an hour. Inside the cab an electric motor drives an air pump, which automatically maintains a working pressure of sixty pounds in the recelvers. This supply is used for the air-brake. A pneumatic sanding deviceis used when the track is slippery. The length of the locomotive, over draw bars, is lly feet: height. 114, feet: width, 3 feet, and wheel, 51-2 feet oo ‘The Fork ix 900 Years O14. From London Figaro. By the way, it is just about *) years ago since the fork made its appearance in Europe. In 995 A. D. a son of the doge. Pietro Orsolo, had wedded in Venice the Brizzantine Princess Argila, who produced at the wedding breakfast a silver fork and gold spoon. Then the high Vene Hes followed suit, and these martyrs fashion pricked their lips with the strument. The fork pros; however, and spread over Italy. it had ian fami- to In 13 traveled as far as France, and in 1008 a traveler brought it direct to England. —_—_we Easily To! From the Chicago Record. “Those people next door are still in their honeymocn.” : “Do you think so?” “Yes; he goes shopping with her.” It ought to interest a great many people be- side base-ball cranks to know that when a ball “curves” through the air first one way and then other after leavit, the pitcher's hand, it does what n- tific men once declared was impossible. They made figures and diagrams and proved that “curve” pitching couldn’t be done ; then the pitchers did it ; and the scientists concluded that something was wrong with the diagrams. 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